Bending Brass

[Pogo57]

For Christmas my son gave me a Traditions Kentucky Rifle Kit. This is my very first experience with muzzleloading. I've done quite a bit of work on modern guns.

The brass trigger guard needs to be bent in order to fit. It does not appear to be a case where minor inletting would do the job. The angle is all wrong.

I'm afraid that I'll break it.

What's the best way to bend it to the correct shape?

Can I heat it or what?

TIA

 

[Zonie]

It all seems to depend on what kind of brass was used to make the guard.

I've had brass parts bend quite nicely at room temperature. I've had others break when bent at room temperature.

I've had brass parts bend quite nicely at a dark red heat and I've had brass parts break when bent at a dark red heat.

After these experiences all I can say is go gently bending a little at a time and keep your fingers crossed.

 

[boar]

I have had to bend a few. I did it like this, heat the part, I didn't quite get it red,almost then quenched in water. Then slowly bent it to the shape I wanted. Worked ok. Have to be carefull with the screw holes, easily to break there. I had a couple break there when I was trying to get them in place. I had them brazed back together. They said on here to heat and quench as it made the brass softer? So thats the way I did it. The ones that broke were not heated. I heated them afterwards. Dilly

 

[mickman15]

I just broke mine a few days ago (same kit), so when im done, i will have to reorder a new guard.

 

[LRB]

To anneal brass, bring it to a low red heat and quench, or let it air cool. Quenching doesn't help to make it softer, but it may allow you to work faster.

 

[paulvallandigham]

Brass will "work-harden" rather quickly, so if you are needing to bend it a lot- don't hesitate to anneal it( soften it) more than once, particularly at the "bend", while you are working the bend. Brass tends to feel " Stiffer" to me just before it breaks, and that is the only clue I have ever gotten from the material before it broke! Obviously, now, I stop pushing when it gets " stiffer", and anneal the metal again.

Remember that brass works the opposite from steel when its annealed or hardened. Brass has to be heated to red and then quenched in water to soften it, while doing the same procedure with steel will usually harden the steel. To Anneal steel, you heat it up to Red, or hotter colors, and then let it cool slowly.

If you want to harden brass( I can't think of a reason to do so) you would heat it up and let it cool slowly, usually in a furnace where you can reduce the heat slowly.

Rolled sheet brass works differently than does cast brass, in my experience. Most trigger guards are castings. They seem to be more brittle, so anneal them before attempting to bend them at all.

Take your time bending brass, and don't rush it. When in doubt, STOP. And, anneal the brass again.Oh, if the casting you are using needs a lot of filing and sanding work to remove burrs, and sprues, or you have serious shaping changes to do to the casting, do all that first. The thinner the brass parts are, the easier they will be to bend.

 

[john armstrong]

You've got a good answer above this. Anneal bend a little anneal bend a little. Brass must be quenched in order to anneal it.

 

[LRB]

NO, it doesn't. It will be just as annealled letting it air cool, and you cannot harden brass by heating and cooling in a furnace. The only way to harden brass is to work it, such as in rolling it. Some clock springs used to be made from rolled brass.

 

[LaBonte]

Wick - certain copper alloys can be heat hardened, off hand the ones I know of are certain bronzes such as aluminum bronze and IIRC zinc bronze. Since there are also similar brass alloys there MAY be some which can be heat hardened - the ASTM should have info on it.

The problem with cast brass gunparts is they don't say which alloy they are cast from (there are a plethora fo alloys) - some are good for the intended purpose and some aren't - of the latter some foundries use easy casting ones that aren't always the best for the purpose......some use various bronze alloys and some of those actually are best heated in order to bend without breaking.

 

[Stophel]

If it's genuine, good old fashioned yellow brass, you can bend it with your hands. If it's modern investment cast bronze (by the way, any copper alloy is "bronze"), it's often hard, springy, prone to cracking, and just won't bend without heating (meaning bending while hot), and even then, it can be tricky. I HATE the stuff.

 

[LRB]

Chuck, I will not say you are wrong, but in my research, the only metal that can be hardened to any appreciable degree with heat is that which contains carbon, or carbides, because the hardening, by heat, is an atomic rearrangement of the atoms present. It is my understanding that no non-ferrous alloy, or metal of any kind, can be hardened beyond it's hardest alloy, or ingredient. I could be wrong, but that is what I have found. I am not a metallugist, but that is what I have come across in, I admit, simple reasearch. I may have missed something.

 

[Zonie]

... (by the way, any copper alloy is "bronze")...

Wrong.

Bronze is a alloy of Copper and Tin, sometimes with small amounts of zinc, iron, aluminum etc added.

Brass is a alloy of Copper and Zinc, sometimes with small amounts of lead or other trace metals added.

Brass usually will bend fairly easily but Bronze is usually harder and is more difficult to bend without breaking it.

Brass files very nicely but Bronze is more difficult to file, sometimes producing a "greasy" or slick feel to the file.

Most of the sand cast furniture is cast from some form of Brass (there are many), while for some reason most of the investment castings are cast from Bronze.

As was noted, the biggest problem in working with any of these materials is that there are so many different ones, each with its own qualities and no one knows which one he/she is holding in their hand.

 

[LaBonte]

Chuck, I will not say you are wrong, but in my research, the only metal that can be hardened to any appreciable degree with heat is that which contains carbon, or carbides, because the hardening, by heat, is an atomic rearrangement of the atoms present. It is my understanding that no non-ferrous alloy, or metal of any kind, can be hardened beyond it's hardest alloy, or ingredient. I could be wrong, but that is what I have found. I am not a metallugist, but that is what I have come across in, I admit, simple reasearch. I may have missed something.

Howdy Wick -
just one article - there are more including the ASTM http://www.keytometals.com/Article71.htm

of course it all depends on what you mean by appreciable degree....compared to HC steel maybe no - but then that's comparing apples and oranges

 

[LRB]

Thanks Chuck, I stand corrected. Very good and interesting info. I have not gotten that deep into other metals than steel, or those that I work with. Take care, Wick. :surrender: :hatsoff: